Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch Takes a Shot at Downton Abbey – Does He Have a Point?

Just days after Abbey‘s leading lady, Elizabeth McGovern, took a swipe at the PBS hit’s polarizing second season, Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch has voiced his own disappointment with the show’s sophomore run.

In an interview with the New York Times to promote the May 6 return of Sherlock (which, like Abbey, is co-produced by PBS Masterpiece), Cumberbatch recalled an incident at the Golden Globes in January where Masterpiece exec Rebecca Eaton playfully taunted him with the statue Abbey had just won. “I just looked at it and went: ‘Begone, woman,'” he recounted. ‘Bring it back when it says Sherlock or [Sherlock creator] Steven Moffat or myself — someone else who’s more deserving than the second [season] of Downton Abbey.'”

“I know too many people who are in [Abbey],” Cumberbatch said, before adding diplomatically. “I thought the first series was good. That’s what I’ll say.”